| Summary: | Background: Cancer in the head and neck region is an unusual form of cancer. The treatment for this cancer can cause permanent damage to vital functions. Nurses' have expressed frustration about feeling insufficient to accommodate the patients' needs. Patients' with head and neck cancer are reported to have low quality of life. Aim Describe patients' experiences of undergoing treatment of cancer in the head and/or neck region. Method: A qualitative systematic literature review with descriptive approach of qualitative articles. Result: Undergoing treatment for cancer in the head and neck region created challenges for the patients'. Many patients' have had experienced that the time between the diagnose and treatment went fast. The treatment caused side effects that led to constraints in daily life and many created a new identity because they did not recognize themselves in the same way as before the diagnose. Patients became dependent to the medical care and made them omitted to others. They had to handle a new life situation, and to manage that, the patients created strategies. Conclusion: The treatment provided side effects that affected the everyday lives of the patients. The side effects impacted on patients both physically, psychologically, socially and existentially. More knowledge is needed in order to improve the health care for patients with head and neck cancer.
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